Xi and Putin reaffirm unity but gas pipeline deal eludes Moscow again
In this pool photo distributed by Russian state agency Sputnik, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping tour a photo exhibition on Russia-China relations in Beijing on May 20, 2026. (Photo: Alexander KAZAKOV / POOL / AFP via Getty Images)
Alexander Kazakov | Afp | Getty Images
Russian President Vladimir Putin left Beijing on Wednesday with declarations of enduring friendship with China and a series of bilateral agreements; But without the energy pipeline push pursued by Moscow, it signaled the evolving geometry of a partnership that is increasingly tilting in Beijing’s favor.
Little progress on gas deal
The two leaders failed to achieve a breakthrough on the Power of Siberia 2 pipeline, which Moscow has flagged.discussed in great detailAfter Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, gas exports to Europe decreased significantly.
After the summit, Russian Press Secretary Dmitry Peskov said that Beijing and Moscow had agreed on the basic parameters of the initiative, but “some nuances need to be resolved” and there was no clear time frame for the project. RIA NovostiReport in Russian.
While Chinese President Xi Jinping stated that energy cooperation should be the “ballast stone” in China-Russia relations, he did not mention the pipeline.
“This is a major setback for Russia and Putin, who had hinted before the visit that a breakthrough was on the way,” said Lyle Morris, senior fellow for Chinese national security and foreign policy at the Asia Society Policy Institute.
Morris said Beijing “may be playing a tough game at a time when Russia is losing influence with the European Union shutting down some gas flows from Moscow.” “There is no way to cover this up: Putin was ashamed of not agreeing on the pipeline.”
While Moscow considers the natural gas project critical to diverting gas exports from Europe to China, Beijing is wary of becoming overly dependent on a single gas supplier. Russia has become one of China’s largest energy suppliers and has increased oil shipments to Beijing after flows in the Strait of Hormuz were severely disrupted.
The two sides signed a legally binding memorandum of understanding to advance construction of the Power of Siberia 2 pipeline in September 2025, but talks stalled due to disagreements over pricing, financing conditions and delivery timelines.
The long-delayed pipeline is expected to carry up to 50 billion cubic meters of natural gas annually from Russia to China via Mongolia. 38 billion cubic meters of natural gas To China every year.
‘Unstable’ bonds and deals
Despite the failure of the gas deal, Beijing and Moscow signed a comprehensive package of more than 40 agreements on trade, education, technology, nuclear security, among others, signaling momentum in long-standing bilateral relations.
Leaders of the two countries heralded their “unyielding” ties and vowed to deepen “good neighborliness and friendly cooperation” with Xi welcomes bilateral relations “It was at the highest level in history.”
Although China is Russia’s largest trading partner, Moscow accounts for only 4% of Beijing’s total trade, tilting the relationship in favor of China.
China and Russia also agreed to deepen military trust and cooperation, including expanding joint exercises, air patrols and maritime patrols.
On Taiwan, Moscow reiterated its support for the “One China principle”, which keeps the island as part of Chinese territory and opposes any form of independence for Taiwan. On Ukraine, China said it remains in favor of a diplomatic solution to the conflict while resolutely supporting Russia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.
In a thinly veiled blow to Washington, the two sides condemned military attacks on third countries, assassinations of leaders of sovereign states and efforts to destabilize their domestic political environments as serious violations of international law.
In the joint statement, it was stated that such “destructive foreign interventions” were the main cause of instability in Eurasia.
A delicate move
Putin’s visit came on the heels of US President Donald Trump’s visit; Beijing welcomed the Russian leader in much the same way: a red carpet on the tarmac, children waving flags and holding flowers.
Xi welcomed both leaders in front of the Great Hall of the People in central Beijing in a ceremony filled with pomp and ritual, with a 21-gun salute echoing across Tiananmen Square. Trump arrived with a dozen corporate executives, including the CEOs of Apple, Tesla and Nvidia, while Putin’s entourage consisted largely of deputy prime ministers, ministers and heads of state-backed oil and gas companies.
“There was a very delicate and nuanced stance to ensure that there was a rough equivalence in China’s relationship with these two leaders,” Evan Medeiros, the Penner family chair of Asian Studies at Georgetown University, told CNBC. “The China Connection.”
Medeiros said back-to-back visits for Xi underscore his increasing centrality in global events. “Xi Jinping is clearly trying to position China as the indispensable foreign power in international politics,” he said, referring to a number of leaders from European, Middle Eastern and African countries who have visited China in recent months. he said.
“This is actually an attempt to say that China is a leading power, even if it is not the leading power in the world,” Medeiros said.
Compared to Trump, who made only his second visit to China, Putin has been to the country more than 20 times during his more than quarter-century in power.
